Arlington County Government, VA County Board Work Session, 12 Sep 2023

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From YouTube: Arlington County Board Work Session - September 12, 2023

Description

Plan Langston Boulevard

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We're going to go ahead and get started.

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We're going to go ahead and get started good afternoon. Everyone, this County, Board work session, is now called to order. This is chair, Christian, dorsy, presiding and all board. Members are in attendance, Vice, chair, Libby, Garvey, board members, Matt deeran, Tanya tento and takus Karen tonis. Today's subject matter is a discussion of the plan, Langston Boulevard effort and specifically the Langston Boulevard area plan, which was published in June of this year.

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uh This large area plan serves to bring planning guidance of a more granular level to uh than what is currently provided in the general land use plan, as well as the even overarching uh comprehensive plan which govern uh future development in the the county. We have welld detailed and reasonably recently updated planning guidance for a lot of Arlington's other corridors, Rosland Boston, Richmond, Highway, Columbia, Pike Shirlington, uh but Langston Boulevard serves as something of an anomaly.

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The entirety of the corridor has been unaddressed from a planning perspective, since the formation of the general land use plan in 1961 and Langston Boulevard. The conditions provide and and have some key attributes that lend themselves well to this form of comprehensive longrange planning. We have a Transit Network that supports and has supported the development of these naturally occurring activity.

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Hubs along the corridor, the uh the built environment, has various uh buildings and circumstances that have immediate, mid and long range plans or timelines for reinvestment, existing neighborhoods and businesses, whose uh whose value can shape unique guidance to facilitate placemaking at various nodes along the corridor.

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These are some pretty great assets, but without intentionality it's not necessarily going to come to pass that these will produce results that are consistent with what the neighborhood uh immediately surrounding neighborhoods immediately surrounding Langston Boulevard want or what we would want for our entire County for this very, very key key area. So the planning effort has been underway for a number of years and has a unique origin story which we'll probably get into a little bit bit uh with this work session.

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But this is an opportunity to accomplish a few key goals to provide an update to everyone uh board members, as well as the community, on really where we are, since the plan was drafted in June of this year, to also have an opportunity to share what have been some uh Community inputs that have come in response to the plan, and that can be a collaborative approach.

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We've heard some things that maybe staff is not, and vice versa uh and then also uh to really focus and put on the table any work that needs to be done to get us to the place where we advertise the draft plan for ultimate consideration for adoption, which will occur in the coming months. So that is our purpose.

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For the afternoon, uh we are going to be guided by an extensive staff presentation which will be broken up in sections with opportunities for board members to uh ask questions, have discussion and offer feedback and with that I think think we're ready to get into it. I'll turn it over to our County Manager Mark Schwarz. To kick us off.

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Thank you, Mr dorsy and members of the board I'm going to get right to it. I wanted to first thank uh Natasha, Alfonso Ahmed who's, going to be making presentation for uh devoting a considerable portion of her life to this project. So over to you.

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Natasha, thank you Mr manager. So, as the board knows, uh thank you and the slides are up. Staff is in the process of developing an ultimate timately, adopting a comprehensive, high level vision for the corridor that will guide both public and private investment long term. We are currently completing phase three. If we can go on to the next slide. Please phase three of a multiphase and one more thanks of a multiphase planning study which began in 2019, based on prior analysis and Community feedback.

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We developed and released the draft plan in June of this year, which includes new policies to support the goals and vision of a green Main Street, as well as preliminary information on implementation next slide.

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So the plan's vision and recommendations for corridor wide Elements, which include transportation and open space, apply to the complete planning area, the plan's recommendations, Focus primarily on the core area, which is outlined in pink on this map and includes areas that are located on or nearest to, Langston Boulevard areas designated for commercial or M multif family uses on the County's General land use plan and in limited location s, areas that include single detached homes.

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Recommendations for all elements will apply to the core study area for areas 2 and three and five, which includes five West and five East areas.

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One and four, which are East, Falls, Church and chidel respectively, have adopted plans and policies that will continue to apply there next Slide the plans, policies and recommendations are centered around sustainability, environmental resilience and Equity by applying a sustainable and Equitable approach to land uses by leveraging proximity to Transit and existing activity, centers to reduce travel times and carbon emissions, and by increasing housing, Supply and meeting the needs of diverse residents and household types. Next Slide.

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The plan proposes goals and policies for each of the nine key planning elements supported by Design principles and guidelines that are related to the building environment and the public realm. The core study area is primarily characterized by lowrise commercial land uses, surf surface parking and pockets of multif family Residential. Properties surrounding the corridor are lower density, residential neighborhoods, comprising approximately 72% of the planning area. Commercial areas have extensive impervious surfaces and aging buildings that are not energy efficient other than in Cherrydale and East Falls Church. The corridor also lacks mixed use.

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Development that supports a walkable, Main Street environment. The current housing mix in the planning area provides limited opportunities for lower middle households. As we know, the County's population is less racially diverse, younger and more affluent than the larger metropolitan area. The corridor itself also has lower percentages of residents of color and is more affluent, but slightly older older than the county as a whole. The plan uses the County's Equity lens to understand whether and where racial inequities exist or are being exacerbated and includes recommendations to medicate or minimize those burdens for current and future residents.

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To achieve the vision for a green Main Street that links neighborhoods to businesses, mixed use, activity, nodes, housing and public spaces and new land use framework is needed. This map illustrates how development should be concentrated on the mixu activity hubs connected by areas that are predominantly multifam to expand opportunities for increasing the housing Supply along the corridor. The plan proposes four new activity hubs in addition to East Falls, Church and charel.

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The L use framework supports the policies on economic, V, ality and housing by concentrating development in the core areas that support both commercial activity and jobs and expand the residential uses and densities that are allowed in those areas to increase the housing, Supply and levels of affordability. The policies on building for are aimed at achieving context, sensitive building design by focusing the tallest building Heights at activity hubs key intersections and within walking distance of Metro and bus stops, and by establishing minimum setbacks, upper story, stepb backs and desired height transitions.

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The policies also focus on achieving development that offers a healthy Urban environment, enhancing connections to Nature and retrofitting surface parking with Landscaping to reduce impervious surfaces. Langston Boulevard is an auto oriented Corridor with narrow, sidewalks minimal tree cover wide lanes that encourage high speeds and vehicular traffic, which is, as you all know, very harsh for pedestrians and bicyclists. It is mostly four lanes with the exception of a six Lane segment east of i66. The greatest imp pediment is the numerous driveways that create conflicts between all modes, resulting in numerous crashes.

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The plan promotes new streetscapes trees and additional amenties to create pedestrian friendly environments. The policies on Transportation focus on creating complete streets that accommodate all modes of travel adequately and safely. Reducing driveways to min minimize conflict points, expanding the street pedestrian and bicycle networks, enhancing Transit service and promoting different parking strategies.

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There are 24 existing public spaces in the planning area with varying types of amenities. However, they're not always very well connected and some neighborhoods lack spaces with increased growth, there will be a need for additional public spaces in the core area. The policies for public spaces, which are in alignment with the psmp focus on expanding the network by achieving new, privately owned public spaces, with Redevelopment, providing a variety of space types and expanding connections to these spaces. Through this plan, there is a potential to achieve an additional 28 spaces in the core area.

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Over time, only 21% of the core area has Tre canopy coverage compared to the county average of 40%, approximately 70% of the core area is impervious, which is also located along the top of 13 watersheds, causing increased flooding in Downstream neighborhoods. The plan recommends, detention and Overland relief in specific locations where new parks, plazas or Greenways are recommended as part of Redevelopment, to detain water or provide a safe path path for the water to flow.

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The plan's goal is to incentivize positive change in the core areas by providing other choices, besides buite development, which only exacerbate the problems that we have today. This could require greater Reliance on public funds and few strategic public private projects to achieve the desired improvements, thus lengthening the time that it will take to meet the countywide priorities. On the other hand, if we proactively plan for change in coordination with other countywide uh plans and policies and regulations, we have a better chance of controlling the outcome and meeting the County's and the community's aspirations.

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So, with the draft plan that was released in June, we provided numerous opportunities for Community discussions, uh which included in-person, open houses of the design, studio, focus group meetings with various representatives of the community forum and Civic associations, and an online engagement form, as we move forward with the uh upcoming public hearings to request advertisement of the draft plan in October, we'll continue to conduct briefings with the commissions and advisory boards, and obviously we will document the comments and and staff responses in the staff report when we submit that. So thank you.

C

This concludes my opening uh presentation and I will share more information after we hear again uh from the Community Partners in in part, four.

A

Thank you very much Miss akmed and, as we uh alluded to at the very beginning, this planning effort has a little bit of a different origin story than maybe perhaps some others with uh there being some Community generated interest from the very beginning and as a result, the planning process is incorporated. Community perspectives at each and every step of the way in ways that uh you know may be different than what we've done for prior planning efforts.

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So at this time we're going to invite uh Sandy, Chesrown and Ginger Brown to offer some perspectives in their respective roles, with um the Langston Boulevard Alliance and with plan Langston Boulevard, the community Forum of plan Langston Boulevard. Hopefully, I got all of the various uh structures and agencies correct there who would like to start off Sandy.

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Oh sure, okay, good afternoon, my name is Sandy chestone and I'm. Here, as the vice chair of the community Forum um a decade ago, as Christian alluded, Ginger, Brown and I knew. We could make a difference for Waverly Hills with County funding of our neighborhood conservation plan.

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But we didn't really know how we could provide a great greater voice for the communities without the help of many who are not here today: John Kenny, Bob, Duffy, Mary, Hines, Jay, facett, sandre, green and many others in the community and all of you, the County Board, the county managers, staff and aeom. We never would have succeeded with such robust stakeholder engagement. So thank you for that. um When Mark Schwarz appointed Paul Holland and me to head the community for comprised of 52, commission and community members, he did not not expect us to be silent.

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We have taken his charge seriously and interviewed nearly all the commissions, the Civic associations and other groups. Yesterday we sent the County Board a very brief summary of our concerns and the opportunities for tweaking the June plan, a very good plan, the lens of environmental planning and climate change.

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The need to clarify public and private investment in storm water management to stop flooding now and alleviate the heat IND in the future and to clarify Community benefits at site plan review to produce buildings with much lower carbon Footprints and recognize the value of repurposing and embodied energy, the lens of equity and the need for County capital, investment in affordable housing, Both calves and calfs, and the preservation of marks improve bus transit and bus, shelters and public gathering spaces.

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Three robust Community, St um uh centers, hopefully with stakeholder engagement in 2024, the greyh house for black Heritage, a library and space for the Arts and real public open space to the meet meet the needs of thousands of additional residents, enhanced Community, with a couple of reduced building Heights in area 5 and area, three enhanced economy with sufficient parking and creative placemaking to continue the corridor's, long tradition of providing services and Retail businesses, while adding more residential housing.

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In Sun summary, 10 months ago, I was celebrating my birthday in maresh, never Imagining the sorrow today and the impact of nature. Let us be grateful for Arlington today, but let us recognize the Arlington of tomorrow and the impact of climate change. It is now and it is bigger than all of us. As the late great Desmond Tutu said 25 years ago, people could be excused excuse for not knowing much or doing much about climate change. Today we have no excuse. Thank you.

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Thank you Sandy and uh you know, certainly if you have any uh loved ones or colleagues in Morocco, I, hope, they're, all well. Ginger.

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Hi uh well, thank you for having me chair, dorsy and members of the County Board and uh County Manager Schwarz um for the past. 11 years, Sandy and I have spent working with the community's many stakeholders, including Civic associations, advocacy groups, business owners, 11, County board members commissions and numerous staff through countless educational, fors, walking tours presentations serving on commissions and one-on-one meetings. We have a comprehensive knowledge of Arlington how Arlington fits or how atlon Boulevard fits into it and the community's vision for its future.

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The community's vision, going back to the beginning of the Grassroots effort in 2022, is to create create an inclusive, walkable Community serving commerci commercial hubs that support small business and create a sense of place. Langston Boulevard serves a large geographic area. Tens of thousands of arlingtonians rely on it for their daily services, such as preschools groceries, medical services and restaurants. We have a very low retail vacancy rate. The businesses Thrive because of those customers. Today, most of those customers drive, while any new customers who walk and bike may be added in the future.

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It is essential to continue to serve the entire Geographic base that uses the corridor. A goal of the plan should be to create and retain Community serving retail and to incentivize and plan for publicly accessible parking. Like was done in Alexandria and Bethesda to create the community's vision for inclusive neighborhood serving commercial nodes. We need to support small businesses while simultaneously increasing affordable housing, balancing the complicated equations for base and bonus density equations that uh only land use attorneys seem to understand is really tricky. It will be said.

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It will be said that if you rebalance the equation on the side of the small businesses, there will be less resources for affordable housing. However, that is an incomplete narrative. There are other tools that must be considered. The plan must acknowledge and refocused on the tried and true way to create committed, affordable units partnering with our nonprofit Partners to Quire land. It will be essential along linkston Boulevard, uh as it is an essential along in the in the county uh driver to create affordable housing, and it will be essential along linkston Boulevard as well.

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Although the plan isn't a budget document, it should acknowledge the importance of this found foundational tool and the board should Acom accompany the passage of this plan, with the promise to support land and acquisition through the budget process. Additionally, many stakeholders are very nervous about the density envisioned in the plan. 10 12 15 story, buildings on the non-metro corridor feels like a lot of change, lots more cars and traffic that ner that nervousness is compounded by two things.

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First, the commitment to the transit is is fairly weak with all of the new residents coming to the corridor. The community feels the plan needs a boulder to be bolder in its Transit recommendations. Plan LC in Boulevard calls should call for 10-minute headways timing that Mak living on the corridor without a car possible while helping to mitigate the community's congestion concerns. There also needs to be more consideration for North TR, South Transit routes. Second, the slow place of the slow pace of improvement.

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The community has shown up to decades worth of meetings and hasn't seen any safety improvements and it's frustrating it's time to start making linkston a better and safer place in the next round of CIP funding. Sandy addressed climate change and storm water, so I won't but I'll encourage you to ponder the other open, Community questions like allowing cult, arts and culture to be integrated in the plan.

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Transparency when it comes to deciding the future of our public facilities and Parks flexibility and connections, bigger discussion on tradeoffs between bike lanes and our commercial zones, historic considerations for the height in the Halls Hill, Park, neighborhood, preservation of leight shops and expanding our future.

B

E

Our parks for the future Clarity is needed. Thank you for consideration and if I had more time, I would talk about all the positive parts of the plan, because it is a good plan. Thank.

A

You I'm glad you both mentioned that I'll, be it briefly all right, negoti technique for more time. So thank you both and we do appreciate it, and not also that jiml tell me the president of the Langston, Boulevard Alliance has joined us in the audience and I believe Paul may be uh watching us remotely. um So we do appreciate all of the work that you all have put in over many many years and in many many meetings and fits and starts so turn it back over to Natasha to continue with the staff presentation.

A

What we're going to do at this point is uh really look at two key areas: colleagues, the built environment and then the public realm and after a conversation about what has changed and evolved from the preliminary concept plan to the current draft. We'll just uh do some do some checks based on a few questions, to to really make sure we're on the right, Glide path towards consideration of.

C

Adoption, thank you Mr, chair, perfect, perfect. Okay, all right so to support the line use framework. The used Maps indicate where mix, use, development and other uses are recommended and identify ground floor priority areas which are areas where the ground floor should remain non-residential and where spaces should be built as commercial ready and able to support retail or retail equivalent uses when the market catch can deliver.

C

So two overall concerns that we've heard regarding the proposed framework are the first is related to the proposed scale and extent of change in the core area, and the second is related to the potential impact on existing businesses with Redevelopment next slide. So for the proposed scale and extent of change. The concerns are centered around the proposed building: Heights and densities.

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The inclusion of few of a few single detached Lots in the core areas and the inclusion of a portion of the chidel neighborhood, which is outside of the Chariot or revitalization District regarding height staff, has indicated that additional density is needed to encourage special exception development that helps implement the vision and Achieve countywide goals for housing, sustainability and placemaking. While we have minimized the extent of change in the residential edges, there are still a few single detached lots that are included to help facilitate mixed use, affordable housing and other multimodal improvements.

C

Additionally, the residential edges between Waverly Hills and the charal revitalization district District are also included in this plan to establish a cohesive Vision along the corridor for mixed use and high density residential. So at this time there are no changes that are recommended to address these particular concerns next slide in terms of the potential impact on existing businesses as a result of Redevelopment.

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The concerns are mostly around the potential displacement of existing Legacy in small businesses, with rents becoming too expensive, insufficient parking or parking that is not accessible for people who still want to drive and the desire to expand ground floor priority areas and require Prime retail spaces along the corridor. Today, businesses along the corridor are already threatened by a number of factors, including significant re, uh Regional, competition and aging structures. There are trade-offs to Redevelopment, however, increased density does provide opportunities for new businesses and jobs in terms of parking.

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All new development will be expected to provide the minimum required parking. The plan does encourage and allow all forms of parking, while also encouraging reduced min minimums for projects within walking distance of Metro and Transit. The plan recognizes that the retail experience is continuing to evolve and in some areas where Prime retail was required. It has resulted in in vacant commercial spaces. So to avoid an over supply of retail space along Langston Boulevard, the plan should be flexible to meet the market demand at this time. There are no changes recommended to address these concerns.

C

Next Slide, the affordable housing master plan indicated a need for 2500, affordable units by 2040 through a combination of committed and market rate, affordable units. The June draft provided preliminary figures on the potential housing, Supply and calfs, which you can see on the slide, along with the current distribution of affordable units by neighborhood area. These project projections are still under review and will be shared with the RTA draft next Slide.

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The concerns around housing were mostly about the potential concentration of affordable units in some areas with existing, affordable housing, the prioritization of renovated marks and opportunities for revisiting the East Falls Church and Cher cherel plans to optimize the affordable housing Supply From staff's perspective. The proposed affordability is expected to remain distributed across the corridor with the greatest PR in areas three and five West to support the plan's vision for increased housing, Supply and affordability.

C

The plan sets policies for increasing calfs through Redevelopment and infill of sites with existing calfs through renegotiated calf agreements and conversion of marks to calfs. While renovation May reduce carbon impacts, it limits opportunity to increase the overall housing, Supply and affordable units along the corridor. East Falls, Church and cherell plans can be reviewed in the future for greater alignment with the corridor wide policies and goals. The timing for that will be considered as part of the annual work plan discussion. So again. At this time, no changes are recommended to address these uh specific concerns.

C

Next Slide, the bill, Building height maps, are responsive to mixed feedback. We heard during the development of the preliminary concept plan when we studied the trade-offs for different densities and building Heights.

C

The community feedback on the PCP raised concerns on Heights in certain geographies, but also suggested that Langston Boulevard is critical to meeting many to meeting many county policies and goals and that the PCP was not bold enough to help meet those goals based on conversations with the LBA and Community Forum leaders to consider additional height um staff increase the building Heights in the areas outlin and red to provide additional opportunities for implementing the vision through private Redevelopment.

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However, concerns related to building Heights setbacks, upper story, step backs and impacts to traffic and school capacity still remain next slide. So the greatest concerns with the increased Heights are in are in at the uh George Mason Drive intersection north of Moors Barber Shop between Glee Road and Woodstock, and at the Air Force Association site in area. 5 East in areas 2 and three. The proposed Heights in those locations are appropriate.

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Given the depths of the parcels and sufficient space for height transitions for the Air Force Association site, the draft RTA plan will change and show A reduced height maximum of up to seven stories, which would still allow additional stories in the sloping topography at the Langston Oak Street intersection, without creating any Shadow or sun impacts on the residential edges to the north. Next Slide, the design guidelines provide recommendations for setbacks and upper story stepback, particularly for new development of budding and across the street, from low density residential edges.

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Some community members have requested adjustment adjustments to the proposed Dimensions to limit the impacts on the abing homes and the existing dense tree. Canopy staff has determined that the proposed step backs and upper story. Sorry proposed setbacks and upper story. Stepb backs would create a more favorable condition than what the current building provides in general.

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The proposed dimensions are appropriate for most Parcels AB, buding, lowdensity residential edges and with the next RTA draft, we do expect to further clarify those Dimensions next slide in area 5 West we've received requests for height increases by multif, Family, commercial and single detached Property Owners between Adams and Beach streets, a cluster of town houses and a few single detached dwellings exist there. Today, the single detached owners are requesting additional height to allow for consolidation with the abing townhouse development.

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In this area, the plan recommends up to five stories, which allows for redevelopment staff does not recommend changing the proposed Heights at this time. However, in the future, if the owners are interested in consolidating the residential densities and Heights can be further re-evaluated next slide. Overall, there is concern about the potential impacts on traffic and school capacity as a result of the increased density. These impacts were evaluated for the PCP, based on the taller height scenario, which is very similar to the proposed Heights. In the draft plan.

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The analysis showed that, while there were impacts to vehicular travel times along Langston, they will be manageable and offset by the safety improvements achieved for all modes of travel and by the improvements to The Pedestrian bicycle and Transit.

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Network APS used the potential development forecasts and applicable student generation rates by housing, type to estimate the future potential enrollment along the corridor by 20130 and based on this analysis, the existing schools will provide sufficient capacity. So as a result of those two data points, um no changes are recommended to address those concerns. Next Slide, the plan's policies for historic preservation focus on honoring the significant resources along the corridor by recommending partial or full preservation. It also allows for interpretation and Redevelopment to help meet other important countywide and plan goals.

C

There are several property owners who are requesting to remove the preservation recommendations. Additional language will be provided in the the RTA draft to clarify that the preservation and interpretation decisions should be balanced with other countywide plan, uh other countywide and plan goals, so I'll pause here, Mr chair and turn it back to you. County Board, discussion on the built environment.

A

Thank you very much, so colleagues, we uh gone through about what 2930 slides here and, at this point, we're really going to focus our conversation on the built environment and what has been presented thus far and really no bounds on what our coners ation can include.

A

So, whenever you're ready, um while you're teeing it off I'll just sort of note, particularly as it relates to uh housing, there's been a lot of discussion about the housing impacts and, and certainly the overall growth impact and just as a reminder, this plan has a fairly long-term Horizon, uh we're looking at in many ways a projection of the near doubling of housing units along the corridor uh by 2075. So not an immediate impact.

A

I believe that some of the correspondents that we've received has somewhat U assumed that this impact would be realized immediately and have questioned the sufficiency of the infrastructure and the impacts. Because of that uh again, this plan is not projecting that impact to occur immediately or necessarily be front-loaded, but to be distributed throughout the next approximately 50 years. Okay, with that I see, Vice J, gby Who's.

F

Got I two sort of basic questions that I realize I just want to make sure I understand one simply for the RTA. When we advertise we advertise Heights, you know you can advertise higher. So if we have a higher height and we add, adoption want to lower the heights I believe we can do that. That's correct I've seen head noots, okay, good I! Don't even need minchow here today. Thank you um and then one other question.

F

um Natasha you're talking about um how, with the topography it might you more more height than seven stories could be allowed because Could you, um but yet you were putting in seven stories. Could you talk because I thought, if we're talking about stories rather than height anyway, to explain how that actually works? Sure um I mean I, understand the point of it and it makes sense but tell me how, if we advertise seven stories, we could do more.

C

So the plan utilizes both height in terms of feet and stories, um because we recognize that in every location you know we have very ID idiosyncratic um sites along the corridor. Some have very uh steep differences in terms of topography between a lowdensity residential edge and a more dense commercial, Edge and others are pretty much at the same level so to allow for additional height in certain locations. We're going to be clarifying how you measure height along the corridor.

C

So we have certain rules and and in the way that we review projects where the average height elevation or site elevation is used to measure height. But um there are some areas along the corridor that could benefit from additional stories or additional height, where it wouldn't impact any.

F

Adjacent so it's.

C

Another way of saying, as long as you're protecting and you're creating the the necessary step backs to create smooth transitions. You should be able to accommodate as many floors as you can.

F

So we could say seven stories, but there's you're going to come up with some detail to say that it could be nine because effectively, it'll feel like seven because of the the the slope.

C

F

Right: okay, as long as that can be put I just wasn't clear how we would manage to do that if we were talking about stories or.

C

We will be clarifying how height is measured.

F

Thank you, okay, just those basic things for a moment, I'll pass the mic.

A

G

You Mr Dean. Thank you. Mr, chair.

H

um And uh thank you uh to staff for a lot of work over many years. uh Very grateful for it. I guess uh I have a question on Heights, um just seeing if I'm sort of understanding there are a couple of areas, um the corner of George, Mason and Langston I. Think we, your recommend.

H

The recommendation on all four corners is for six story is right and is there a historic um piece to that I think there's we received some feedback on a on a request for five stories: I'm not familiar off the top with the building or the historic value there.

C

So at that intersection there are no um historic resources that we've identified. It's all pretty much commercial development.

H

Got it okay, I may follow up there um and then there was a question about um 12 and 10 stories in area 5, um and um this is up as I understand it up from the sort of as you come out from DC up Langston past the Air Force building um and those couple of areas uh they're currently marked as 12 and they're sort of within the neighborhood tucked along uh i66, and that is the position. Is there any uh that wasn't in the PCP?

H

But the thinking is that there is available additional density or height there. That would be appropriate. Is that.

I

That's correct.

H

Okay, great I'll yield I unless I do have a housing question, but uh I'll yield thanks. Mr chair.

A

Okay, we'll come back to you, we'll go to Mr karantonis and then miss.

J

Tento, thank you. uh First of all, yes, indeed, uh this is an awesome body of uh work. uh Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very, very, very much for for uh leading that effort and I understand that a lot uh you had a lot to absorb and still it's a lot uh that is absorbed um on the issue of urban form.

J

uh So on the uh on the uh proposed, that's on an area three where the Lee shops are so there is a transition from two to 10 correct, and the idea there is two is basically preservation.

D

J

D

J

Correct compensated by 10 stories in the back.

C

That's correct, yes,.

J

And what is how how do the um the the shop owners, the owners there of the the land owners absorb that? How how do they.

C

How do they feel about it? um I? Well, we've heard different um opinions over the last several years. I, don't think that they were thinking of preservation at the very beginning, but at some point in the process, when we've met with them, they were interested in preservation if they had the.

J

C

To develop the back without much disruption of you know, of the businesses themselves, which takes coordination but um as far as I know, they've considered all options, including complete Redevelopment of the.

J

Site and and the the so the entirety of the site I mean for for me, the important thing. What what I understand we we are intending to to preserve here is the vitality and the the nice business environment there. This is really one of the center I mean the you know best best pieces of Co of neighborhood retail there it's actually very attractive to others that come from across the across Arlington across the region to to there, so uh there will be a huge Dru.

J

You know uh it will be disrupted the moment that this is going to be redeveloped. So the question is what what else is in the in the mix there public space the front uh Etc? What? What is the proposal of improvement there.

C

At the leight shop site specifically, so we are recommending major improvements to Cherry Hill Road, which is um the property, has Frontage on that road. If you recall, there's uh back out parking the sidewalk while it it does allow for some outdoor door, seating and all of that, it's quite narrow.

B

C

um So the plan recommends to convert that into a more walkable Street, potentially a festival street that could be converted as you've seen. You know during the Earth Day events into a special event space so really widening the sidewalk, adding Street trees, which are absolutely necessary there, so um it on that site.

C

There are proposed recommendations for streetcape improvements around the whole perimeter of of the property um to the south, of that the properties which is the lucky Gardens apartment site um is also recommended for um not only not detention but Overland relief and basically set back to be able to create a Greenway connection for pedestrian activity. So really these sites have kind of work together in Being able to create a more urban walkable environment. So it's important that they that they coordinate on any improvements that that are needed in the future.

J

Okay, I understand uh the other question was, and we heard uh um Neighbors coming up to us is the uh intersection uh where the barber shop is uh with you know, small and I understand difficult to develop Lots. uh So there was conversation, consternation uh with the neighbors on South, Columbus, Street Etc, said 22nd Street about the uh provisor of uh or the let's, the lack of ability to step them down or to have neighborhood matters. How? How do we deal with that? The proposal.

C

Well, you are correct in that those Parcels um along Langston are probably the most constrained in anywhere along Langston. um Some of those Parcels are only 40 ft deep, that's not sufficient to create a an efficient commercial structure.

C

That's why the buildings that are there are pretty small, um and so in order to encourage consolidation of the parcels um and improvements along Langston Boulevard, particularly to create wider sidewalks, because we need more space from the private development consolidation is, is going to be key, and that is the reason why the the residential edges or the single family lots that are in the back were included in in the plan um and in terms of the height.

C

As we know, the commercial properties today can build up to 45 ft, depending if your C1 or C or or C2, and um what this plan tries to do is build a little bit more of an incentive to encourage again the consolidation that we need to to achieve those multimodal improvements. And so the plan recommends up to 5 stories, which is not much more, but it might be sufficient to kind of spur.

J

That I understand that, and for me this was an example of showing where you know we are thinking about feasibility and because we have a a very long list of deliverables. Here we heard a lot about environmental sustainability, about neighborhoods matters, about form and actually architecture Etc. This needs to be compens, some someh. It needs to be paid for when, when we build so I'm concerned about those sides that they are so so narrow in terms of their I mean it's not out of the realm to think about the visibility of these sites. Thank you.

A

Thank you and I want to revisit, put a marker in to revisit that geographic area, but miss tento you're. First.

I

um Thank you, TR dorsy I wanted to um first as I've been reading through the plan. This is this is just a comment for your consideration, um often through the plan. It's mentioned that uh and- and you have this on slide 8 as well, that the corridor has lower percentages of residents of color and is more affluent but slightly older than the county as a whole, and that current housing mix provides limited opportunities for low to middle-, inome households and throughout the plan.

I

For those who don't know the corridor or don't know North Arlington there's this assumption that it is um not as diverse- and um you know more fluent, but it is one of the most diverse and less a flu fluent strips in all of North Arlington, especially the most northern part of that and so I think a lot of the development and advocacy for preservation and as we're looking at Cales and marks lend itself to this quarter because of what already exists there in the history and so I just think qualifying that for community members I mean we had some advocacy in the past, where people assumed that linkston Boulevard, who may have not lived there or explored there, was much like other part, part of more Northern Arlington.

I

And that's really not the case. We have a very diverse community and even in the plan, it states that I think it's area, 2 and area 5 actually are higher or in line with the rest of the county.

I

So if we could just provide some clarifying language so that we're really noting the uniqueness of this Corridor in North Arlington as we look at the history of our County, where diversity has been split between North and South in some ways, um especially as we're honoring like Halls, Hills and other uh historic communities, there I just think it's really important that we are clear on that. So I just wanted to make that comment.

I

um The other thing I wanted to get clarification on and- and this will probably go to maybe a a later point is there's a couple of places where we talk about the goal of 2500, um affordable units and in some places talked It's, a combination of marks and calves and in other places it looks like there's an inference that it's all calfs and we've heard at least I've heard from different Advocates the same someone saying: well, no, it's all calfs I'm saying no, it's a mix of marks and calves.

I

So can you clarify what it actually is so that we can then enter into a discussion about that sure.

C

So the the affordable housing master plan goal is for both okay, the calfs and marks, um but the marks are Li. You know limited to up to 60% of the area me an income and that's important, because I think the affordable housing master plan recognizes that the whole quarter or not all of the units are going to con convert to to calfs and and marks, will always continue to stay there for for as long as they can as long as they're, not renovated or or redeveloped, and so really.

C

The goal is to try to have a combination. Okay, because it provides again different, different types of housing types.

I

Okay, so I think- um and we can look at the pages later, but there are a couple places where it's not clear and I think it's really important, as um we have a lot of affordable housing, ad Advocates who are focusing on Strictly Cals in understanding that, um and especially as we move forward in development and that'll, bring me back to my um my next point, where you're asking about like what's missing or what we're not prioritizing I am a little bit concerned about in the plan where it mentions things of the nature like we have, you know marks we have marks up to 80%.

I

We have this many marks to 60% understanding. The increase of you know the 60% Ami, uh but then there's place where it says, but these Mark having marks does not predispose them does not preclude them from future development right, and so, when I look at Columbia Pike, we have huge sections of um marks. You know huge developments that are pretty big when we redeveloped C Pike I used to live on columia Pike.

I

When we developed col Pike, we lost some of the marks, but because of these two big developments, we still have a good amount of marks. We do not have any real developments from Spout Run. You know towards East FSE Church like that. So I do worry about a saying that, because there's no real place where preserving those marks- and it looks like the historic um designated, the historic, uh the hcds I- can't remember what they stand for. We have one that's going to be um D designated because of the plan.

I

So just thinking about that I think really prioritizing on preserving marks. um I know: there's been some advocacy for like a tiff for different things. Maybe we do that to help owners who have marks, you know, rehabilitate their places and keep them that way way.

I

So, just thinking about that, if our our goal is that especially and I can't remember if it was one of the recent plans on a affordable housing master plan that talks about um over the next 30 Years, our Ami Community or our 120% and Below Ami Community is going to increase with some of our community members 12% and above actually exiting the county right. So just I just want to be thoughtful about how we look at that and I'm supportive of affordable housing.

I

I agree with some of the points that have been made about working with our affordable housing, develop velers to really ensure that we're getting affordable housing I do worry about development, um especially with the rights to contribute money to affordable housing versus is putting in affordable housing units and the fact that they're only putting in five to 10 I, don't know if we've had any that have put significantly more than 10 in at any point in time on site.

I

So, just being intentional about I, don't know, maybe incentivizing that or clarifying that or I think there's been a recommendation someplace about a a tip that would go to partnering with a aable housing investment on the corridor. um I'll stop there TR doors.

A

Okay, thank you, I think we're ready for round two on this start with VI Garvy.

F

Okay, thank you, I think I'm, going to turn a little bit to where Mr Caron has left off on um the five stories for businesses. I'll. Let her just yeah on the that's okay, on the five stories for what about six or stick built, can go up to six, or is it seven up to so why? Why would we think about going up to seven or allowing that, possibly because sure you've got to do a lot of incentivizing to get stuff get some building going.

C

Yes, I mean the decision. The decision to allow up to six, rather than seven in those locations really had to do with the community's uh concern for more height up to five.

A

Yeah in the area that Mr karonis was talking about.

C

Yes, right, oh you mean I, then I missed it then I'm. Sorry I apologize you're talking specifically about the Columbus Street I'm, actually happy.

F

To have you talk.

G

J

Along so not I, just thinking about how we factor in feasibility when we make a plan, because we can you know, feasibility is also a point in time- consideration- something that's not visible today, maybe visible tomorrow or in in 2045 right. uh The plan is about delivering a a public realm, a the boulevard, uh the vision of the Boulevard and along will. You know there will be opportunities. Etc, I'm I was just thinking about the the constraints that that need to be taken into account.

A

Given the the long list, are you talking about that area that Mr.

F

I was fing up where he was, but I was really thinking in general and where I was getting at is why did you not go higher than five in in general, and what I'm hearing is push back from the community that and I understand that I I I'm would maybe be interested in a little more flexibility, because we need to have that height right next to a road is different than height right next to a house so and I know so.

C

Are small back.

F

Up on houses, I know that.

C

Yeah, so there were a number of factors, besides um Community sentiment, and all of that I mean we've. We've had to balance that we have I know.

F

C

The entire Corridor for all of the neighborhood areas, as best as we could but I mean in in some locations. The sixth was also because there's just not enough depth to really try to transition to the seventh stories. We are uh providing very specific recommendations for step backs which are dimensional, and so, if, if the Lots or or blocks are not deep enough to do so, then then we were sensitive and stopped it at at a height that we thought was still achievable.

C

U we're always going to be balancing between what's economically feasible and not, and we know that the sites that are five and even up to six are challenged. There is no question about it.

C

It's just that, and you may recall that in the preliminary concept plan or before that, when we were doing the land use scer analysis, we had considered extending the areas of change to include the full block on both sides of Langston Boulevard, and particularly in area two, where we see the lowest Heights, we've limited to just the parcels directly along Langston, and so that also had to you. We had to reduce the height in order to create the right transitions because we were working with less space.

F

Okay, if I mean if I would be interested, if there are some areas where possibly could consider another floor or two I would be interested in that, certainly for advertising purposes. um So I mean I' just be interested to know that and then also on the retail action plan. um Are we being too restrictive with I mean the retail action plan dates from before the pandemic, um and I have long worried that it's actually too restrictive, like anywhere in the county I'm a little uncomfortable did? Have we sort of thought about that a little bit?

F

Do we really want to go kind of full retail action plan from pre- pandemic here, or do we want to allow some more flexibility.

C

So the this plan, although it references the Arlington retail plan, it does um designate both gold and blue and uh blue areas, Green, Street, uh sorry, gold and blue streets. The gold basically says that spaces in those at in those locations need to be designed with both exterior and interior features that support retail and Retail equivalent uses it's pretty flexible it doesn't, um it does say it doesn't say you have to build. Let's say spaces that accommodate restaurants right off the bat.

C

um It does provide more flexibility and those are in very limited locations that we're showing in in each one of these neighborhood areas. For the blue there's a lot more flexibility. It's basically just the exterior features to encourage walkability active uses on the ground floor, but we're not necessarily requiring all those spaces to be built out to accommodate restaurants, which we know has expensive ticket items right when it comes to the design of the.

F

C

Right right, so we we think it's pretty flexible, I, think what we're hearing from the community is the opposite from some members in the community they're concerned that we're being too flexible and the corridor might turn and become more residential.

D

C

Because we're not requiring those spaces.

F

Right but once again, we want to make sure that they yeah they get used. So it is a. It really is a balance. So that's something I'm going to just sort of continue to sort of noodle on. If there's some thoughts of that from staff that we ought to be a little more flexible, I'm.

B

F

Open to that I understand wanting to have restaurants and things I. Just don't want to have want to have a restaurant and you don't have a restaurant, so you have nothing so we want to make sure we don't overdo it.

G

Thank you, okay, Mr deant, you're round to thank you Mr chair, so.

H

um First, thank you for that. Discussion was really helpful for me. I I am um starting the road I've read the feedback, indicating a desire for more um sort of node or Hub, encouraging Active, Space and I'll confess that between now and the the RTA and the the close I need to do more. Thinking on that, but I'm glad that um Vice chair Garvey surfaced. It second I think just for the purposes of kind of showing our math.

H

You guys know this I think the community knows this with I'm very thankful for the detail on the leh heights shop, the the continued thinking um and I do kind of again associate myself with vice sh Garvey and that there is a there's a now and then there's an RTA and then there's a final and so I've got more learning and thinking to do, but, and certainly appa's letter was uh helpful in the couple of sentences included there. My specific question is actually on housing.

H

uh Appreciate Miss tent's comments with respect to Marks um I'll confess that there that, though I was part of the uh working group on the affordable housing master plan, there's been so much discussion that marks I think there's a important policy goal of having um of promoting marks that can reach 90 to 110% I. Don't believe that we should ever just my position is that we should not use County funding.

H

We can use land use tools, but I don't think we should subsidize above 100%, um so uh as you're trying to sort of absorb Mr Leno's comments. Those are that's a thought I have about. You know we want to preserve that um for Arlington, our median income being quite High, uh that middle class opportunity. um So maybe that can help you as you're, trying to sort of put together Mr lent's comments and mine I guess the biggest thought is on investment and we did receive feedback. um I keep thinking of the we.

H

In some cases, we've recently been receiving land for affordable housing purposes, I think the geographic distribution of affordable housing is super. Important uh and I appreciate. The Nuance that you described of North Arlington is is both Langston Boulevard and further north I I happen to live further north and- and there is um not enough economic diversity, in my view, um further north and yet tricky to to figure out how to do it. I guess you know we also have acquired land. So there's a specific in the feedback we got from the alliance.

H

There's a specific point to to um a number of millions. I think it's over 100 over 200 million in in um that we have spent on land acquisition for affordable housing since 2012, but that hasn't been in Langston Boulevard and I'm, not ascribing blame I'm kind of trying to test and understand. If that is a correct insight and I, think it's important to be nuanced here, in the sense that um there there is a cost.

H

If you buy land in the most expensive part of a community, you will likely get fewer units, and that is a cost. But at the same time, if we concentrate affordable housing, we've got a problem, um as we know from all the Nationals stuff. So is that number broadly right and H I, don't know if you can speak it all or in followup, can speak to the to this Con. This question of, should we be using for acquisition. I am happy for that long question to be for later.

H

If you get offer a thought or two that'd be great.

C

Yeah, maybe what I can do is um cue. My colleague, um I I believe either Russell or Richard Tucker online or Joel Franklin they're, both in the housing division, and we can come back to it because they're they do have those numbers and they can explain um more specifically where the money has been allocated and and if there are projects that have ever been submitted along Langston. My understanding is, there haven't been, um but we can maybe come back to that and we'll we'll cue him.

H

Sure that sounds great and it sounds like the cue is for later, not magically that Mr Tucker will appear. So that's absolutely fine, I just uh I'll yield, but I would say that I am interested in that you, it doesn't seem, seemed to me enough to say it's more expensive in my neighborhood, therefore, not as much affordable housing. um That's that's not uh I think we all can agree. That's not quite good enough and I'm not suggesting that staff is in any way. Supporting that view. I just wanted to say it out loud thanks.

A

Thank you so um I'd like to return a little bit to the conversation initiated by Mr karantonis about the neighborhood surrounding or enveloped by 24th Road, North, Columbus, Street and GLE and Langston that that area that you're familiar with around Fire, Station, 8 and Morris barber shop. So you know you mentioned that it really it's one of those I think your word was idiosyncratic, which I think is the perfect word.

A

It's one of those just unique areas with really shallow depth to which we are trying to figure out what are the appropriate tools to balance all of the various considerations and before I get to my question just as a general comment and feel free to push back.

A

If you disagree, the the balance that we seek when we talk about height and economic viability is not for the purpose of making a developer happy, it's a recognition that what we're trying to do with this plan is to actually create a change that is more consistent with the plan's vision and principles as opposed to what would happen by right. So the sort of scale balancing is they can do 45 ft by right.

A

In a way that really harms the neighboring Community, if we figure out how to maybe put more height on the table, that will create an incentive for a developer to come and do a special exception kind of process where we can then shape that at the micro level to be harmonious.

A

That's the approach right so so with that, given that this area is really idiosyncratic, are there any other tools within the planning world that we could think about in implementation to f further, maybe guide a developer towards effectuating, a certain Vision so that we're not just hoping that they come up with something that we.

C

Like those are all good points, um we we don't we're not ready yet to talk through what the potential land use tools are, but we are certainly thinking about those very constrained sites, the sites that are limited to the five stories and the six stories to see if there are, if there are alternative, use tools or something like that, that could encourage those smaller sites to to come forward and and not just become by R development right.

A

Yes, so there there are things that we can think about as as part of implementation that can be developed over time that could take this broader land use plan and bring it into a little bit more granularity. Yes, great. Thank you. Miss tento,.

I

Thank you. um I just wanted to quickly um get clarity on something about the Heights on George, Mason and Langston Boulevard. We are at six stories, George Mason and that four corner those six stories and then, where um the hall Hills area is those are five stories, and that was the area we were just talking.

C

About that's correct, um except the Halls Hill area does extend a little bit towards the intersection, so actually the southeast corner of that intersection is still in the jamm length. Civic association, so part of it is uh part of one of the one of the commercial properties in that civic association is designated for six stories. Okay, but again, that's because the site is pretty deep. It's one of the very few deep sites.

F

I

Great, um the the and I did want to just clarify that um I strongly support the committed, affordable housing and my biggest fear is that we're going to end up with a Boulevard that has market market rate housing and committed, affordable housing and nothing in between and so I'm trying to figure out where that balance is considering um that, at least in North Arlington Langston Boulevard is one of the only places that we have marks for 60 to 80% and maybe 80 to 100%. So this is just to that.

I

As you are taking the feedback, you understand the context behind that um and I think that's one of the biggest challenges: the number of police officers and um service people, teachers, fire departments, maybe not teachers as much as teacher assistants, making they they they're not able to live here and they're living here, because um a couple police officers are living in a highrise and they're getting a discount because there's a police officer in the building right this kind of arrangement that we have and so I'm really worried that we're going to lose um a community.

I

If we're not careful about how we do this. The other thing that and that'll take me to the um retail, the the small businesses. As we were talking about leh Heights.

I

uh We do have a lot of small businesses on the corridor and many of our businesses are minority owned um and I worry about how we are looking at thinking about retention. um Of that diverse of that diverse um area you know, do we have have we considered?

I

uh Have we considered incent to retention or relocation for some of our small businesses, in particular I'm thinking about the strip on again George Mason and Langston Boulevard um leh Heights is a I agree, it's a great area.

I

It's that's really where Community comes in that neighborhood um to meet and I know that there are some areas like where Lions Village is I, think that we have some great businesses there that we could lose if we aren't intentional about incentivizing the priority of the divers diversity of businesses on the strip and so um I didn't know. If you all are thinking about that, there's not I, don't find anything.

I

That's prioritizing that in the plan or pulling that out, I don't know if we should make it a plan goal or just put it under our commercial retail goals.

C

So it is in one of our policies to support the goal for economic Vitality is to strengthen the existing commercial base, because we know that it's successful. We certainly don't want it to be hindered by whatever happens in the future, but we're also recognizing that that change is already affecting a lot of the businesses that are there. I think I mentioned it before.

C

We've got aging buildings that are going to get renovated and that eventually is going to increase rent prices and and basically uh displace them just naturally, there are a lot of uh businesses that have been there for a very long time that have no succession plans and we're learning about these things, and so we're we're not going to be able to retain every business or every building along the court order forever. Eventually, things will change, um but to your point about the policies, the policies do talk about.

C

Let's work together to figure out a way that we can retain what we can for as long as we can, because we know that some things are not always going to be there forever. um We mentioned the the cace program which helps to provide tax incentives. um You know for properties who want to who want to become more green. We mentioned very lightly, but because we don't really have that program in place in full force in the county.

C

But we do talk about maybe there's opportunities for creating like a commercial revitalization program or something like that where there could be grants or something that can be given to commercial properties if they want to renovate that will help them buy themselves a little bit more time. The county certainly has other programs that helps with business plans and- and just you know, educating the the business community in this ever evolving market, right and Retail um environment.

C

That we know has changed and a certainly be impacted by the by the by the recent um things that have happened in the world with the pandemic and everything else that are affecting businesses, and so it's really about a toolkit. The other thing that we always keep in mind is when we talk to property owners and there's many along the courtner. You know I think you mentioned the lion.

C

Village shopping center, that property owner who's interested in redeveloping that site has always said and I'm not going to quote him and you know and hold them to it forever. But, as always said, we want to keep the Italian Shop there, because, because it's been a long-standing business and it's something that they feel proud of. So as we go through site plan, reviews and projects, there's a lot of conversations that can be had with those Property Owners to to encourage them to perhaps retain some of those special things along the way. Can we force it?

C

No, but we can certainly put lots of policies and and things that indicate that's, certainly something we want to accomplish. But we've got to recognize the flexibility so we're back to the. What do we do? We have to balance things and- and that's really what the.

I

Plan is trying to do completely agree with what you're, saying and I understand. I just think what I have learned in my work in public service is, if it's not in writing, it doesn't happen, and so just planning the stve that it's in there that you know we value our small businesses in the diversity of businesses on Langston Boulevard, and we hope that our property owners will work with us to consider ways to preserve these businesses right and having that layered throughout the plan.

I

Every time we talk about it, because without that written down, no one's going to know that's what we want, and so, while we talk about it, um you know some of these things may not be happening for another 10 years, or maybe none of us are sitting here or working with the county, and so all those people are going to have to reference. Is this book. So um thank you for that discussion. Chair.

K

If I can just add to that, comment too, because I think that what we're trying to convey to the board and and others today and in other settings as well, is it's important that that it's this plan as a as a piece of many, you know plans that can guide this Corridor, so we we need to be reliant on other strategies. Other tools, like a toolkit that uh Natasha mentioned- and um you know it's not just this one plan guiding absolutely everything for Langston Boulevard. It's it is the retail plan.

K

It is other strategies that um the county with AED you know helps support retail businesses and you'll, hear that um as well as we get into the next set of slides, you know related to public space or to storm water management. So um we need to be thinking about how we can mention things in this plan, but we may not be able to mention everything in this plan and we have to be reliant on other plans and and policies to to make the future of Langston Boulevard happen.

A

Thank you for that. Okay, Mr karonis.

J

uh Thank you, Mr, chair, um I, want to continue where um and that conversation with Mr, tento I think she is. She. She hit a very important piece, part of what a commercial note is and part of what you know. These are the the engines of the of the boulevard. These are the first deliver delivery areas, and this is where uh we should be, in my opinion, learning from the vast uh experience we have in Corridor development in Arlington cluding on Columbia Pike, where we have a lot of small businesses.

J

We have seen you know, successes and and and and less than successes. So um if there is one piece I understand that we cannot, you know, prescribe an economic plan for for L Boulevard in a in a planning document like this I do understand that, but we could, at least in my opinion, name who would be our partner, our critical partner, in that the Len Boulevard Alliance, is a critical partner for that these are the people who will be seeing their name they've been. They could be named in the plan to say yeah.

J

We have somebody who Minds the shop we literally here, who is who is actually working with this business so that you don't wake up tomorrow and you are in a sea of franchisees and you don't wake up tomorrow and you're. Only uh you know uh you know. Ancor shops will be 711s and CVS's. uh Who will be able to manage the issue of how much parking do we need to make these these businesses viable? uh How? How can we get? You know cycling, customers to that.

J

How can we make a niche, for uh you know small funky, women, minority owned businesses, Etc and and I think in langstone. There are good bones for this because the wallets are on the street. uh This is the corridor, has an enormous capacity because of the affluence of its of the a the average affluence of its resident, and that creates a lot of opportunity and and a lot of challenges as well. Circling back to uh to housing the issue with Mark preservation is that marks need a lot of mass Mark equals mass.

J

We need a lot of them so that we have a a market for Marks. If we don't have uh sufficient, then you know we we, we are in a Contin ly, Supply, starve, market and and market rate affordable begins to evaporate, like it has been doing for the last 25 years in Arlington, so that that is a serious concern.

J

Cfs are our best answer to that at this point, so I understand that the plan uh focuses on on on committed, affordable housing opportunities and and Mark is still a a a strategy that we haven't figured out. I I encourage I'm approaching this conversation here and understanding the the goal of geographic distribution. I really want to dive as much as I can. In the issue of preservation of marks. There is a significant side conversation to that. uh We have also condos. uh Some of them are aging.

J

Some of them are you know, market rate Condos for lack of a better work uh and I am interested in in in in in including thinking about how to make sure that these are not redeveloped in something that's completely out of uh the reach of the people who live there today, as a percentage as an Ami percentage.

J

G

All right, Mr, D, Franti, um Mr, chair I, don't.

H

Quite know, um the two buckets that we're in so parking is what I wanted to talk about, but transportation is next, is in the next bucket and so um I have a question on parking and I promise not to have three questions, but I I, don't know whether it's now or later.

A

Why don't you asking now and M ahed will tell us whether it's appropriate now.

H

Or that is appropriate, given all of the work that you have done um so um uh simultaneously. um We agree on Transportation being important and a shift from um you know single occupancy vehicle, which is when I drive to leh Heights. Too often it is uh after 8:00 for dinner and um and it's a single occupancy vehicle, um but you know um we know in order to make the nodes work.

H

I thought it was very helpful to talk to think about Shirlington and uh Oldtown Alexandria and to think about those and then also sort of in some contrast to our Metro Corridor. So we want our businesses to thrive, and it does seem to me that some plan for parking um is better than um you know forcing me to say you know: don't do this, you know I'll, you know occasionally don't tell anybody, but I'll go over to the Safeway in Fairfax, County and I. Don't want to do that.

H

I want to be in Arlington, and so the question is: um what do you think about this planning for parking in putting in the plan sort of some things that incentivize? um What has happened in Shirlington and and in.

C

Oldtown we we have heard that comment before, and it's really tied the planning for parking, um at least in terms of the way that the LBA has presented. It is really U related to some kind of Municipal parking structure um which, from from a multimodal stand standpoint, it's probably not the best use of County dollars, simply because there's not that much of it to go around and we really do need to make improvements to the court or um start there first and parking. It's not that we are envisioning, that parking will go away anytime soon.

C

We do recognize that there are um single family homes that do need to be able to travel to and from the corridor or along the corridor in cars, and that will always stay that way, um but I think think the the first problem that we have and when we did the analysis of the parking utilization along the corridor.

C

We noticed in a lot of the because we did very specific site studies of commercial properties and multif family properties that are pretty dense and we looked at the utilization rates of those sites and we found that a lot of them were underutilized.

C

It was really a mix actually um and and Ryan is here, our planning consultant, who did the the the traffic counting and all of that and what we found is some sites were overp parked other others had no parking and many were underp parked, but the worst problem was not that it was the fact that the parking wasn't utilized very well. It wasn't integrated.

C

There were parking lots that, were you know near or adjacent to one another that weren't integrated that weren't accessible, and so it just made the experience for people for for for businesses and for Shoppers and all of that sort of frustrating, because it it always makes you feel that you can't find parking. um So are there areas that need parking? Yes, are there areas that are overp parked? Yes, I think the the the planning part of the parking is really about in in the future.

C

When new development comes in is making sure that properties when they develop that they integrate, that they share access, points and consolidate those access points as as as much as possible and work in a in a way to to be more strategic in how they use parking, especially in off times, if you're going to the restaurant, maybe there's an office building that during the day, you know that at night doesn't need that parking, and you can.

C

You can use that that um and there's other many other types of parking formats, and that's why the plan always says we encourage all types of formats. We're not going to be reducing. I mean we're not going to be putting maximum parking ratios to just you know, uh to force everybody out of the car. That's certainly not something that we're going to do, but we've got to be able to balance it. Otherwise we will never get a multimodal corridor so again we're back to the let's see how things evolve.

A

Sure, that's so I'm going to take uh prerogative and move us along because we do have the public realm.

B

A

And uh just to sort of wrap up where we are from this particular section, uh a lot of great comments, but a few things to highlight I think moving forward just to make sure staff has captured them. There is uh an interest in reviewing some of the language around housing, specifically calfs and marks, and the numbers to ensure consistency in the document, since it does seem to indicate different things at different places uh that we further look at language that can specify the uh desire to create maintain opportunities for small businesses.

A

That are, um you know that are that are Legacy businesses and that are unique and different and to prevent involuntary displacement as part of this, and that there be further uh attention paid to any strategies for Market, affordable units, either preservation of existing ones or not uh biasing future development, so that we don't have a steady flow of marks throughout the life cycle of this plan.

A

Lots of other stuff that I know you captured, but I did want to highlight those things which seem to be mentioned by multiple people, and now we can move to the public realm conversation.

C

Perfect, thank you Mr chair, and if we can go to the next slide, this is actually relatively short um one more slide. Thank you all right. So the plan uh includes recommendations for expanding the street grid and identifies additional intersections for future study in all of uh the neighborhood areas. Next Slide. The plan also includes recommendations for bicycle facilities in all neighborhood areas and identifies the types and location of the proposed facilities next Slide.

C

The greatest concern that we heard regarding the expansion of the street grid is in area 2 from residents along 25th, Street, abing, the Harrison shopping center. The new Street grid expansions will allow for Consolidated access to new development, which will reduce driveways along Langston, Boulevard and other major streets to improve safety for all users. At this time there are no changes that are recommended to address this particular concern regarding the street grid expansion in that location. Next,.

C

Slide So. The plan proposes specific recommendations for all segments of Langston Boulevard in areas 23 and 5 West to transform the corridor into a complete street, with enhanced bicycle facilities and wide sidewalks that provide space for pedestrian and Street trees in all segments, except between loram Lane and Military Road and East of Spout Run. Additional ride of we will be needed to accommodate all modes adequately, which requires Redevelopment next slide.

C

So there are three main concerns related to the proposed Transportation recommendations which are centered around the desire for greater County participation in achieving the the ultimate cross-section for lexton Boulevard, enhanced Transit service like brt bus, rapid uh transit or premium service and advanced implementation of transit services to increase ridership. As we know, previous efforts to make Langston Boulevard improvements have required significant time investment and coordination with property owners for very marginal results.

C

The corridor includes frequent driveways and service parking lots and Redevelopment, as I said before, is needed to realize those multimotor improvements plus Rapid Transit is not an appropriate use of constrained. Rideway on Langston Boulevard, as ridership under both existing and planned land uses, does not just ify a dedicated bus lane. As the quarter redevelops, however, Transit demand will continue to be monitored and the bus service levels will be adjusted to meet that demand. So at this time again, no changes are recommended to address the concerns related to Transportation next Slide.

C

The plan proposes 28 new, privately owned public spaces in the form of parks and plazas. The areas with the most plann density also have the greatest number of public spaces proposed next slide.

C

The main concerns related to public space to public spaces are centered around the desire for additional county-owned spaces that can accommodate activities and programs organized by the LBA. The plan's recommendations are responsive to the public space master plan policies. The plan recommends reserving land for privately owned spaces or pops with Public Access, as the main strategy reclaiming and repurposing public RightWay for public space is also envisioned in strategic locations.

C

The county may also strategic Ally assists with certain public space improvements when adjacent Redevelopment occurs, depending on site, specific conditions, timing and funding available at the time. So at this time there are no changes that are being recommended to address the concerns for public spaces. Next Slide the plan proposes detention and Overland relief in specific locations in each neighborhood area. Next slide. There are two uh main concerns related to sustainability and resilience, which are centered around the desire for greater County participation in storm water improvements and providing specific tree canopy targets for private development.

C

Flood mitigation must be planned at the Watershed scale, which requires Blended engineering approaches to adapt to challenges. The specific goals and mitigation strategies will inform the CIP or the capital Improvement plan. The draft plan is not the only document to generate infrastructure improvements through the CIP, the ramp, among other policies and regulations, will inform and prioritize resilience strategies uh along all watersheds, including those along Langston Boulevard. At this time, no changes are recommended to the storm water recommendations.

C

To address this concern for tree canopy coverage uh staff will be adding specific targets for private development in the next draft, and that concludes this uh section of the presentation and we can back open it back up to County Board discussion.

A

Terrific thank you. So you can see that generally, as it relates the comments and feedback that have received there are no significant changes being offered at this time, but we're open to questions and comment. Miss tento.

I

um Thank you for the presentation really appreciate all the work that staff has um taken to invest in this plan. I think I agree with our community leaders who shared that overall, it's a good plan um but I do think. The conversation we've had today are things to be considered and I want to talk about the transport ation in the public bus piece, um and this will take me into parking as well.

I

So here you talk about we're, not going to do anything now to increase Transit time, because there is not showing a need for it at this time and we'll reevaluate it as we grow now have a depreciation for that.

I

um But I do in I, don't know I, don't necessarily agree with it, because I think, if you don't have a lot of Transit um you're, not going to call people who depend on transit to that Corridor. The other thing that I think people don't think about is there's I, believe an assumption made that if you live in affordable housing, you don't necessarily have a car but I. Don't believe that is the case um and I do worry about limiting or reducing parking as I.

I

Can't remember if it was a benefit or reducing the ratios for something. If we are not going to do parking hubs, then I think we need to do one to one ratio. Whatever the current ratio is I know that goes against our you know.

I

um Reducing our car use plan and I appreciate that, but I think as Mr defanti said, north of Langston Boulevard are all single family homes and and car users there's no Transit, that's dependable there to get anywhere and those families need a place to buy groceries, have services like dry cleaning, car repair. All of that is on linkston, Boulevard and they're, very close to other places like mlan the city of false Church, Fairfax County.

I

So if they can't access those services in their own Community, they can easily go elsewhere and not having parking of available for them is going to be an issue. So if we're not going to do parking hubs, we at least need to make sure that we are not reducing parking ratios with our community. The other thing I want to note is that in affordable housing in particular, I know that we've gone in that route.

I

I have a specific case in Queen Court, where it was a mother with an adult with a student with disability, and they were having trouble getting their aid to come to serve her son because there was no parking in her building and it was only paid parking on the street and the aid is not a high income earner, so he couldn't afford $15 a day and his company wouldn't reimburse him so I worked with the county to try to find plans, but that's one person who happens to know Advocates and leaders.

I

What about all of our other community members who are struggling with this challenge? So I just really and I share that that story, because I think that, in our hopes to really focus on climate change like I get it. There's no excuse on climate change today, but we can be the best CL clim change in the community, but then we're not going to have a diverse Community, because right now, climate change is expensive.

I

Electric cars are expensive, hybrid cars are expensives and we still have to determine how we're going to support our community members who don't have access to support climate change due to income. So I really worry about the parking and about um I want us to really think about how we're addressing that need and not making, um especially if we're not going to have public transit.

I

The people who are going to looking affordable housing are probably going to be people with cars because they don't need that to bend that Transit and um I know for a fact that, if you depend on Transit, you only look for housing along Transit corridors, so I just wanted to um I. Have one more thing to mention. I. Think that covers um two of my things. Christian.

A

Great, if you can hold that other one and we'll get everybody in there.

F

If I could just follow up on Transportation a little more thank you um appreciate, miss tento. Talking about that could. Could you talk just a little more about why brt won't work. I, know parts of because I think um you know they're looking at Route, 7 and places in some and we've looked at Columbia Pike I mean there places where it can work which speeds things up.

F

Then maybe you mix in traffic, then you've got something a little more and and maybe there's some things that we shave off a little bit or we have you know turning Lanes or something. So we don't have any. Could you talk about that a little more because it feels like it's kind of a great Corridor to just.

L

Yeah so Kristen Culkin's um longrange transportation planner with Dees, um so we do Invision Transit on the corridor. I think one of the things I almost want to Circle back is to the fact that our tsp, our Transit strategic plan, is happening right right now, and one of the recommendations in the tsp is actually more bus service in this area. We're not at 10-minute headways. Yet we just we don't have the demand for riders for it, but we are through that that 10-year strategic plan already recognizing the need for additional Transit service along the corridor.

L

So it's coming it's one of the things that Dees will monitor as Langston Boulevard is realize. As the County's you know, Transportation needs continue to evolve. We do anticipate Transit along the corridor. um The plan says 10-minute Headway as we need it. um We are balancing it with a lot of other Transit needs throughout the county, but I do want to reiterate that we know we need Transit along linkston Boulevard, whether that's brt or not, brt is is kind of a gold standard.

L

That's what we've got on um Crystal, City and pic yard- that that's that's brt, so that type of investment in transit is very unique. It's very heavy! What we think makes a lot of sense on linkston Boulevard are enhancements as appropriate. So like we can do Q jumps. We can do Transit priority signals. We can do enhanced bus stops, maybe not to the same capacity as Columbia Pike Columbia Pike is the highest ridership transit route in the Commonwealth.

L

That is bus, um but we do anticipate that as the plans realized as redevelopments come in those Parcels that sit next to a bus, stop we're going to be looking for enhancements from those developers. The county will come in through Partnerships and look at opportunities when we're not seeing those enhancements come through Redevelopment to enhance the trans experience for writers. um I know, we've talked a little bit about how it's a constrained Corridor, and we need just space from these developers. These Property Owners just to realize wider sidewalks. We just we.

L

We don't have the the wiggle room in order to get act even more space for Transit, but we really do think that, through the Redevelopment through strategic Investments at intersections, enhanced bus stops um realtime arrival information that we can change. The experience for Transit Riders along the corridor.

F

Thank you. You I yeah I should have I'm I'm clear. It can't really be real brt, but the enhancement that that helps a lot and it it's such a hard because, as Miss tento pointed out, it's the chicken and the eggs. So there people who want trans, who would go there if they have ch, but they don't have chance, so they don't come and because they're not there, we don't do Transit and because we don't have trans that they don't. So that's a I know a hard one that we're constantly kind of working on.

F

But uh thank you for the answer. Yeah.

A

Okay, Mr Karen Donis.

J

Thank you, Mr, chair um on parking. My my feedback is I, understand the open approach to say you know we are open for every iteration I. Do think that, in uh the conversations that we will have until adoption uh that we should think more carefully whether we should uh propose some preferred ways to deal with parking like, for example, ancillary parking, like you know, more concentrated parking, certain places and say well. If somebody comes with a project that concentrates parking, that can be more efficiently reused and serving a bit, you know a bigger pedestrian.

J

If, if the place is more pedestrian friendly, it can you know, accommodate uh more efficient delivery on parking. I think that this kind of uh thinking hasn't been hasn't found a an entrance in our planning yet, and this is an opportunity to do this, um I don't know if I explain myself well enough, but what I'm looking is? You know we've seen places even here in the metropolitan area.

J

There are I mean if you go to bethesa, for example, they have, you know, concentrated parking, and so they avoid to have to deliver parking in every single. uh You know Block in every single building. They have one central place, it's like 3 to five minutes away, but it's fine and it works, and it offers, in terms of you, know, climate resiliency later the opportunity to repurpose this uh this these these assets, while if we have parking building in every in every place, this is way more difficult to do.

J

um Plus it adds a lot of cost to the to the construction and and we we we know who pays the piper here and that's affordable housing most of the time. So the second thing that I wanted to ask so I understand the transit Network that it will be high frequency, and you know, High availability I. For me, this is important. I would love to see a mention of wanting to to serve also schools with with this network.

J

I think this is an excellent Corridor to do that, and, and and I would like to see some language referring to this um and on cycling. We've we've heard uh I think that I mean I, applaud you for the effort to to provide uh bicycle facilities and and uh protected bik Lanes. My question is: do you think that they are enough, or that I mean what is the uh communities feedback on on their.

C

Functionality I'm sorry, I, missed that part on.

J

The B on Langston, yes,.

C

J

Along Langston.

C

Yeah we've heard mix feedback but for the most part, I'm going to say that the majority of people do support the bicycle facilities directly on Langston. At one point we we considered, you know just the the parallel routes for certain parts of the corridor. They are very constrain in terms of the RightWay. This is west of Glee, where it's really constrained and those who are very Avid bikers uh were very concerned that they didn't have a way to get get through the corridor on the corridor. Certainly, we need the alternate routes.

C

I think that was their point, but they want to be able to provide that for as a you know, sort of a for people who use it to really commute to work- and you know not just for for leisure.

J

I I want to dive a little bit deeper on this uh in a separate conversation on this I I understand that every model supports also the the critical vital point of so many square feet of of retail Etc. uh We are at the Advent of electric biking Etc. This will be moving a lot more people because, in a in a to a tough topography like a lung symol has. This is a a great solution that wasn't available today.

J

So uh I I think that this is a model that needs to be looked very very carefully along with uh Transit that that complements the the options here. Thank you.

L

I'll say that our cross-sections do that we we, we incorporated a dedicated separated from pedestrian traffic, separated, vehicular traffic um for areas 2 three and five for each of those. So there's there's dedicated you know not even just in the roadway for most of this areas anywhere. We have Redevelopment completely curb separated on both sides for bikes and scooters. In all the.

G

Cross-Sections.

L

G

Thank you, Mr D frany. Thank you. Mr, chair.

H

I guess I'd align myself with Mr karantonis on the Nuance on parking I, don't I think your answer was satisfactory and that broad brush but I don't know each of the nodes is different, and so you know how there's in the plan currently there's a a cutout section on biophilia, which I think is important.

H

I could also Envision, alluding to some of the tools that you suggested to consolidate development that might deliver additional parking or even just to be concrete, that there might be a single node at which some of the strategies in Bethesda and Shirlington might be useful, so I'm, mindful that there is a responsibility we have on climate to to to encourage and people not to drive not to drive. But my experience you know with the 52 and the 53. Is they come by my own house and the 7 2?

H

Is that induced demand, um particularly on the 52 and 53? Aren't there I've now ridden almost every bus in Arlington the 55 feels different and the 3 y I haven't taken, but investing in infrastructure a little bit around. There might be helpful. I guess to your point.

H

I think you I know you miss Hawkins I, think you sort of there's a development must do this or the CIP must do this and I want us to be able to try to add CIP funding where it's strategic, because I don't believe that um you know I think we do need to invest just storm. Water is a problem everywhere.

H

We need to invest economically in Langston Boulevard, um even if Equity might say that it could be nuanced with respect to other parts of the county, we still need to invest, and so that's the thought on transportation and then mindful of time, I'll just uh say that there's a couple of these items, pf8 that talks about consolidation of recreation facilities, we haven't yet talked about the Le Lee Art Center.

H

We know that there's a shift happening there, but I still do think that um you could both be for an expanded, Dawson, Terrace and uh enough recreational facilities, including the Lee art center, and uh you asked I think at one point. You all asked for what we agree with disag with pf8 I'm struggling with a little bit and then I, PS1 and PS2 I. Think I've.

H

Just made the ca tried to make the case that um a little public spaces and public investment, at least this is one board member who'd love a conversation with staff about whether there's room for a little addition in that piece of the plan. Thank you, Mr chair.

A

Okay, uh go back again to Vice J gy.

F

Thank you. Is it okay if we leave transportation and get to resiliency, that's anybody's done with um sure. Thank you. um I think this is probably part of where we overlap with other other plans, um because I'd like to see do we have we mapped and I I did look through this, but I I got I started going faster towards the end. Have we mapped heat islands along likeon.

C

Bevard, if Ryan can recall um I know, we've looked at it earlier on at the beginning, when we were doing the ex conditions analysis, but I haven't seen it in a while. So I'll be honest.

F

Yeah, so maybe that that that's fine I mean where, where I'm heading in a way is one I think probably would be a good thing to do. Maybe um and then I would love, and this isn't just Langston Boulevard I'm, realizing I, don't want to see another flat top building that doesn't have an amenity on it and it doesn't have solar or green, and it feels like there maybe needs to be some I. Can we kind of up the discussion a little bit that we just?

F

We just need to put green things on on top of roofs or solar panels on top of roofs everywhere and again, that I know that's not just Langston Boulevard, but that's um something I think we need to do, but maybe we can kind of nudge it along here. Thank you.

A

Thank you, Miss lantto,.

I

Thank you just a keep on the storm water thread. I wanted to get a clarifying Point. Many of the and I just want to make sure I understand this correctly. Many of the existing structures, buildings um on link symbol of art are not meeting current um standards on how to mitigate storm water on their properties, so any Redevelopment would require minimum standards, um whether we give them a whether they give us a benefit on increasing that they're. Regardless of how we look at it, storm water management is going to be improved with every new development.

I

C

Correct it is correct and I can call Dimitra on uh to come online, so she can explain a little bit further. But, yes, it is correct that any project has to um mitigate their runoff directly on site, but because of the sites, because because the sites are already highly impervious, they can't make it any worse. um In other words, they what they might have to be required to improve is going to be very minimal. Okay, because they're already at the worst that they can be and I that's to oversimplify. It.

C

Apologies I'm, not awat engineer, but if demitro wants to add anything.

I

Well, the only I want to be thoughtful of time. The only reason I bring it up is I, don't know if a lot of our community members understood that piece right. So there's been this advocacy that the county has to invest in storm water on our own and I'm, not saying we shouldn't consider that, but I just want to be very clear for everyone to know that with any new Redevelopment storm water mitigation will be improved because there's a new code standard that exists.

C

If, if and if, and only if, they do special exception development and they're coming in asking for additional incentives, if they're just doing byright development? Okay, but with this plan there is an opportunity because of the incentives that we're building in okay for them. For for us to require detention, higher expectations for mitigating storm, water, onsite and and and and a slew of other things.

I

Okay, thank you. um Christian B have closing comment. Should I just wrap up my last in? Do you want me to wait.

A

No not yet I think we're still getting into substantive questions: Mr Dean! Oh sorry, I'm.

G

Ready to WRA, okay, okay, then.

A

I'll re, oh I, think he's got if you've got a question.

J

Go ahead, yeah! It's it's just a question! So how so the Green Boulevard concept right. So what what are the elements of the Green Boulevard course just the storm, waterer management and the onsite energy production? How how does this and and specifically I've seen it's a very recent thing? I mean green green uh Corridor development is a relatively recent. uh Unfortunately, recent uh I've seen that normally plants are detailing. What's the role of government, what's the role of individual?

J

What's the role of stakeholders is also Ro of investors and the the combination of all these uh comes into the plan and says yes, this is the this is what Arlington County will do: storm water transportation, green spaces, tree canopy biophilia? Then there is a section that says: oh when we expect now everybody else to do the following: you know: reduce the trips uh build more resilient buildings, etc, etc. So how? How do the plan address that in specific terms, so that somebody can say? Yes, this is plan compliant, and this is not.

C

That's a good point: we are going to come back to the plan and add a little bit more specificity to what you know are some of our expectations in terms of again meeting that goal for Greening the corridor you're right. It is a combination of public and private um interventions. Let's say from the public: it's pretty simple! You know.

C

We know that there are roads that have way too much asphalt and the you know the county can come in if there's a funding uh allocated for that in the future and add green infrastructure and reduce Paving and all of that.

C

But for the private sector, our Maps indicate not only the the location of new, privately owned public spaces, but there's a number of green ways that intersect various parcels, and so, if they're, redeveloping they're going to be required to build space for these green corridors that are going to help to connect and and they're going to be required to enhance the street Scapes to add Street trees. The majority, that's why 70% of the core is impervious is because the majority of it has no trees.

C

And so, when you look at the map, you know it's about Greening everywhere we can with new development, and we've heard it before it's it's not building out building up so that we can reserve space on the ground. We can add green roofs and in multiple levels of the building, not just at the ground level. We've got to think creatively in in the various levels, as well as on the faces of the building. So wherever we can is adding green elements to buildings to to again mitigate the Heat heat index and it's just a combination.

C

It's a layer of different interventions or strategies.

J

Yeah sure, thank you.

A

So a technical question uh back to Transportation a little bit um as it relates to our assessment of what to do with 29 and multi and and multimodal improvements along Langston Boulevard since V owns it. Have they put any. um You know, hard constraint that have limited are thinking about either what improvements could be achieved and when they can be achieved. I'm hearkening back to Columbia Pike, where they made life quite difficult for the county for a long time in in thinking about that.

L

So vot has been uh kind of a partner throughout the whole process. They've reviewed all of the different iterations of the plan um at this point, vot is in the when you're ready to do something come to us and we will do transportation, analyses and partnership with vot um I think we learned a lot from the the Columbia Pike experience, so hopefully anything we do and work towards along Langston Boulevard will have that benefit, um so they they've not said no they've not looked at any of our cross-sections and said this just isn't achievable.

L

It's all been continue the analysis and we'll work with you moving forward.

A

But they they're still holding the posture of we reserve judgment to offer a final analysis until okay, all right.

L

It is a v roadway.

A

Yeah there we go.

L

Okay, all right, we do the same.

F

J

Even even on Columbia Pike, the letters with condition.

A

Oh, there are lot so many conditions um anyway. uh The next piece was I, I I'll, just say in terms of the privately owned public spaces, knowing that this is addressed uh better and and more more specifically in the public spaces master plan.

A

I'll just note that I think some of the concerns that we're hearing from the community is the assessment that some privately owned public spaces feel less public than than others and in cases where it's done well, people don't know that they're privately owned spaces, but there are other cases where it's quite apparent that this is public in um legality only so um for our general public who's concerned about that.

A

As far as an approach to guiding development on the corridor, we have considered that it's addressed in other planning documents that the county has, but maybe there's an opportunity to speak to the quality of the privately owned public spaces with a little bit more specificity in this plan.

F

A

Question Miss Garvey.

F

Yeah one question along that: it just occurred to me when we're analyzing the looking at all the the public spaces. Do we find do we break out how many are focused on like children, playgrounds I mean I'm thinking. You know one thing, because this is incredibly um I mean everything's in here it's I I'm really impressed with, but um we haven't called out, like specifically child care I'm, looking at basically familyfriendly making it.

F

So it's really so that CU Parks can be a whole lot of different things, and sometimes it's that you know children feel really welcome and it's great for them to go and sometimes not so much, and you probably want to make sure that that's kind of distributed so I don't know if we want to get that in there somehow too, and that could be either the public or the private spaces. Probably something to consider.

C

So we have in the report or in the plan uh identified where certain neighborhoods have requested more of those types of spaces for children playgrounds specifically, um but we we understand that at the time you know when, when the project comes in for development, it might be in 5 years it might be in 10 and we won't know what the actual need is and and the actual space that needs to be provided, and so those things would be hopefully iron out at that point and because it's in the plan it will be mentioned, it will be said.

C

This is what the community wanted. Is this still a need, and that would be verified and worked through the process.

F

Yeah that would be great I I would I would venture that it's always needed it's kind of. If you build it, they will come, and maybe it's not so you want to have and obviously distributed throughout the just like the he Islands, knowing kind of what. Where are your hot spots? Where are your problems? Thank you.

G

A

Any other questions, or are you all ready to move in your closing thoughts and final salvos.

K

Mr, chair can I just um add.

A

K

Back in um the discussion that we had about the storm water management improvements um I, we do want to make it clear that byright development does have some requirements, but they're very light and so I think the really the main message is again. We still want to provide incentives for special, exceptional special exception development, where we can have um a little bit more conversation and say about the design of that, but and and certainly be making greater strides than what we would be getting through by right development.

K

So, and if we need to say more about that, as we move forward at the time of uh staff report review and uh the RTA, we can do that.

A

Okay, thank you. Okay, we'll start this end.

G

Mr deeran, thank you. Mr chair.

H

There are three words in one and I think it's page, eight, this the vision that talks about sustainability, environmental resilience and Equity as the foundational pieces of this and um I kind of I feel that we have a done a lot of work and then we sort of done. You know a lot of work and then there's this last 10% or 20% of the time from a staff standpoint can be defining for how the product actually actually meets the standards that Miss chesman said said about.

H

Are we facing this huge climate change crisis that we've seen all summer? So you know on sustainability that could be economic or could be. Environmental I would just submit that some CIP funding I, don't think that we should be over promising, but I also think that we I I want to sort of put in a a plug there, that for storm water for for GRE, green um I think we need to be willing to invest in order to address that challenge on environmental resilience.

H

um I want to think more about the every roof uh every flat roof. You know we have to be careful there. How we do that, but I do think either green or solar is important, and that could help us reach this this step and then the last point is tricky because uh the scope of this plan and several of our letters that um housing letter from yimes of Northern Virginia, the um the several of the letters talk about how critical East fall.

H

Falls Church is, and that's a difficult one, because I think the slide said it's a next year thing and I accept that. I also will share that. My intention next year is to share this thought again about how I think East Falls Church is an important spot um for uh reaching some of our equity and housing goals and I hope I haven't either said too much, but it is sort of the truth of the the the moment for me and and I think that we have to try and reach Equity there. Thank you, Mr shair.

A

Okay, thank you Mr lto. Are you ready.

I

I am all right. Thank you, um I'll actually start off where well. First, let me I just want to reiterate how much I appreciate the work. That's gone into this plan. um I know it's been many years in the making and the the community and the thoughtfulness that has been put in um is very much appreciated.

I

I know, there's been a lot of hard work and time and investment into this, and so I don't want that to be overlooked and I think that the feedback that um at least I'm providing today is really to to reemphasize what um Mr deante shared about, really perfecting that Vision refining that vision and making sure that our goals aren't inadvertently missed, because we we weren't thinking through some thoughts. um I, do think this is a semi-, Suburban Corridor and we don't have it's Unique to Arlington.

I

So I want us to be very intentional and that's where a lot of the feedback that at least I've shared today has come from. With that in mind, I want to Echo that I really believe.

I

We need to be intentional about investment in calfs on linkston Boulevard um and making sure that we are investing in Cals um that we're also seeing a Continuum of marks because I don't think we're going to achieve that anywhere else, north of LST, Bel art um and it's such important to the diversity of our community, especially as we look to blur the line of South and North Arlington and making sure that we're reaching our goals of being inclusive and a diverse Community here, which brings me to my next point that we didn't touch on today.

I

But I just want to highlight our cultural and historical resources. It's mentioned in the plan. um We didn't talk about it today, but I want to make sure that I think there's a recommendation from one of our communities. I can't remember which, because we've met read so many that talks about ensuring that it's part of the the language and I don't know if it's Community benefits or something that and I can share that with staff later. But it talks about including you know, asking our developers to think about cultural and historic resources.

I

Langston Boulevard has such a rich history for our community. It is some of the places where we have actually changed the course of the whole state of Virginia. We look at the integration of Dorothy ham. We still have a remnant of the wall in Hall's Hills. If we don't intentionally talk about the culture that exists here, the culture that existed and the culture that may come, we will lose it.

I

um Some of that has happened on the Pike and so I just want to make sure that we don't lose sight of that, uh and then I'll um I do also agree with. You know making sure that we look at look look at emphasizing solar, green roofs as we do Redevelopment and I.

I

Don't believe that we should be consolidating community centers, um it's a long strip and if we're looking at increasing, affordable housing as well as other type of housing, they they need places to connect, um and so I think that where we have land, we should really think about making sure that it is available to the community to be used as a community space instead of consolidation and I will end with um asking that we really Define a date for the Cherrydale plan and the East Fall Church plan to align with L symbol of art dates really allow for points of action.

I

um I don't have I. I have not had a chance to research. Those two plans, but if you look at, um let me look at the page on I think I flagged it and I want to be thoughtful of time. So, if I don't find it quickly, I will ignore. But there's a page in our PowerPoint that talks about our calvs and our marks and East Fall, Church and charal have some of the lowest and so I just want to make sure that we are looking at the links and Boulevard holistically.

I

I recognize that these two communities have done a lot of investment in making sure their communities reflected what their goals were. But, as we are looking at developing the whole Boulevard, we need to be holistic and so really seeing how we can support them in aligning with the linkon boulevard plan and make sure that they're defined dates and applied resources for staff to work with them. To do that and I worry that without that noted, in our plan, we might lose sight of.

A

I

A

Thank you for my closing comments. I'll try to be brief, I'll just say. First of all, you know this. This is, is an impressive body of work, I mean 170 plus pages of a document. We didn't really talk about the area that I'll be especially interested in and that's the implementation Matrix moving forward, um but I do want to just acknowledge the the tremendous and and what I think is exceptionally high quality work that has been done. That's gone into this thus far.

A

You know documenting the existing conditions, building upon the work of the community, uh really sussing out the vision and values of Arlington County and all of our um relevant plans, along with the expectations of the community and and applying good land use planning tools to a very idiosyncratic Corridor and coming up with some Innovative approaches. Where necessary. It's really. It's really a great body of work and so I'm appreciative of it uh I recognize that for many in our community they look at some things. They I I.

A

Think the general sentiment that we're hearing hearing overall is this is welcome from Langston Boulevard overall, and there are some specific areas where people have maybe different ideas and- and that's certainly appropriate and I- think you've done a pretty good job of bringing that word balance into the equation and I'll just pontificate for a second and say that, for me, balance is not.

A

You know what is the most extreme one on one side, the most extreme on another, and let me just come up with something else: it's really coming up with something that likely is going to make either of those sides really not loving it, but is nonetheless appropriate at this level and to remind people again what this level is. This is not the end of the story. This is something that generally provides expectations for what will be specific project level detail proposals which will come along at some point.

A

They may be based on the parcels that we've identified now, or they could be an assemblage of parcels that we have not yet envisioned, but it is through this work that we will begin to I believe shape. What are good, reasonably good proposals that staff can then evaluate with um with greater uh ability to control a positive outcome than they would otherwise, and one thing that I'll just also say about housing.

A

um We can get into a lot of conversation about the number and marks and calfs, and all that I just do want to remind everyone that the uh documented plan comes up with a goal of increasing the number of attainable units, the percentage of them as part of the overall units than what exists with current conditions.

A

So, regardless of what we project about the number, the plan is actually projecting that we do better as it relates to providing A diversity of uh housing types at different incomes than what we're experiencing on the Langston Boulevard Corridor corridor. Already. Finally, I will note that Miss tento You've Been instrumental in shaping my thinking on this. You know this plan for all of its 170 pages and and a lot of language doesn't say everything and that's by Design.

A

We have other plans that speak to things more fully But the lens that I think we maybe want to take with a final reading, and drafting of this is recognizing that developers and and Property Owners they will be given the guidance to make sure that they reference other plans when they engage with staff to think about what they could do with their property for the resident of the community.

A

They may look at this plan as the only thing that they may need to know, and while we do a good job of referencing other plans within it, most people are not going to approach it that way so, where we can say a little bit more to make sure we're giving a a completer uh view of what our vision is. We should take that opportunity. Miss Garvey.

F

All right, thank you. So this is, it is really impressive um and I realized that um it all started with residents and I was actually there. So it was remarked how many um Miss, cheson and and Miss Brown how many board members they've worked with I'm the one you started with and you're we're going to finish so I've been here for the whole trip. The whole ride and and I haven't been as involved at times as as others have, but I realize I've really seen. This is kind of I.

F

Think I think what the Arlington Way, which is an amorphous term kind of really is at its best in a way one thing: is it tookes a long takes a long time we're at 11 years and counting, um but it started with residents looking at what needed and doing incredible work as residents and then the board and staff coming in, and what a professional report and and everything you really. You are getting pretty much everything in there um and I.

F

Think one of the evid a bit of evidence on on the how successful you've is that there wasn't huge upset um when this came out. We have had St well, there might be upset coming down, I see that KN on what always good to do, but it didn't land with a thk and everybody getting which does happen sometimes, um and that's just a testament to everybody's work from residents to staff really over a long period of time um and I find myself thinking.

F

I won't go into you know, so we brought up details here and we're going to continue to work to work on things and refine it um but th this is it's really a transition. I think timing is everything I think when we started this plan we were all thinking in the 20th century and now we're finishing up and I think we're in the 21st I think if we' way back, then we wouldn't have focused on climate change. The way you know we've been through that July 19th storm we're watching. What's going we're like?

F

Oh my gosh, we got to do something so we're focused on that we've been through a pandemic. We've we see a transition with the economy. We know we've got to do things differently, Transportation too. So although it's taken a really long time, I actually think it we've kind of ended up at just the right time. So I'm really impressed I'm looking forward to finishing this out and um thank you so very much for the work, and this is just it's great. Thank you.

A

Thank you, Mr karonis last word.

J

Thank you, um I will try to be brief as well. uh First of all, uh thank you for the amazing work. I had the opportunity to to walk with you to come to the studios, uh uh talk to a lot of constituents, so residents and not residents of lson, Boulevard uh and I think that there is a general appreciation and an acknowledgement of the work here. um It's also uh after all, as Miss gy just said. Yes, this is citizen driven. This is resident driven and one of the nice things about.

J

That is that, at the end, uh the the composition reflects the aspirations and the goals of a community today also the thinking of a community today, and we see that in Novelties that come in this this this plan, uh starting off, saying that this will be a green Boulevard. It's a big step forward. We haven't had that before. This is the first one, and so in the conversations that we'll have until uh the RTA and beyond that, I I really want to focus on how we make that more conveyable.

J

What exactly we are expecting not only from ourselves as the government of Arlington local government, but also from uh the communities from the neighborhoods, from individuals, from investors, from from everybody from from uh everybody else, and and this conditions a little bit. My my take on on parking might take on on Heights might take on storm water management might take on Greenways, which is another novelty. This is the second plan that has a a similar concept and I think that uh the more we can be more inspiration as well as aspirational.

J

We should say this is what we envision. This is how it should be Etc, um because I believe that what what remains from this planning over time, because corridors I learned that the hard way on Columbia, Pike and and the software as well, uh it is a good start. It sets the the the rules of the game. It sets the frame it frames the conversation, but then it takes on its own life. Communities continue to to implement the plan. They continue to build the place.

J

um So, for this reason, I think that um and I will, you know, come back or Circle back to previous um uh comment. I made I think that naming who uh the community center point will be. The Len bouevard Alliance in this sense, where everybody comes together, uh is an important uh investment in the in the in the success of the plan. As we go ahead, uh it is a good thing to say who will be in charge of besides the government.

J

Besides the abstruct and specific Community actors who will be in the center H, who will be the convenor of this and I and I believe that this is important to to say um more conversations to to be had I I also I have a we. We didn't touch on everything. I think Arts is an important uh uh part. We I think Mr tento touched upon historic preservation. That's also an important part, because this conveys the the desire to have quality and and have a place, that's recognizable through generation.

J

So thank you for for the the work and I look forward to the conversations to.

A

Come okay, so with that uh Miss, Alfonso, Hamed, uh Miss, Smith and Miss Caulkins. Thank you for presenting Miss Chess brown, misss brown. Thank you for presenting the community perspective. I will note that there are a number of people who are in attendance, who I think you uh you made sure were assembled in the event that we got into really granular questions. uh You know about 20 staff members, both in person and virtual. Thank you all for your work on this and I believe.

A

We also uh had our consultant, who sort of uh helped us along the way, from the very beginning, from a aom, welcome, and- and thank you for being here. This is huge effort.

A

We got more to go and speaking of what the more to go is is colleagues our job is to make sure that we immediately take the discussion and conversation from this work session, Focus ourselves on the Langston Boulevard area plan and make sure as soon as we can, but no later than the end of the week, you surface any new bodies of work that staff has not yet um really gone into any depth on. That is. That is your job. That I'll task you with and then from here.

A

We expect that the next time the board will consider this will be in October, but up until then going to be lots of meetings with various commissions and other bodies, as it relates to the area plan. Any questions comments All right. We are adjourning. This work session and I will make the following motion. As we have a closed meeting matter to discuss, I move that the County Board convene a closed meeting as authorized by Virginia code, section 2.2, 3711 A1 for discussions regarding a Personnel matter regarding a board employee.

A

Is there a second second seconded by Vice, chair Garvey, all those in favor, please say: I I any opposed the eyes have it and the board is now in Clos session. Thanks.

A